by John Siscos, for the Woodbine Entertainment Group

Campbellville, ON — The best juveniles on the continent were in action on Saturday (August 25) at Mohawk Racetrack, in three C$40,000 eliminations for next Saturday’s C$1 million Metro Pace, the richest race of the year for 2-year-olds.

While the top three finishers, plus a fourth place finisher drawn by lot, qualified for a chance at the big prize next weekend, the elim winners also had the added incentive of choosing their post positions for the final.

The first elimination went to Moon Beam, the 5-2 second choice with Brian Sears at the controls. Allowed to lag near the back of the pack for most of the trip, Sears swung the son of Dragon Again out for the stretch drive and came flying the last quarter to nail Santanna Blue Chip by one length, with Lonestar Legend third and Weekend Gambler fourth, in 1:52.2 over a track listed as ‘good’ from afternoon rains. The 1-2 favorite, Lis Deo, faded down the lane to finish last.

“It looked like there was going to be enough early speed in the race,” said Sears. “My horse packs a really good punch on the end of it. I thought I could at least be in the top three if worse came to worse, from racing off the pace.”

The $20,000 Harrisburg yearling purchase was notching his fourth win in five starts for his co-owner and trainer Brenda Teague and has already banked more than C$170,000. His only defeat came in the Woodrow Wilson at the Meadowlands on August 3, when finishing second to Dali, a colt he’ll meet up with again in the Metro final.

With the pre-race scratching of the prohibitive morning line favorite Duneside Perch due to lameness in the second elim, the favorite’s role went to Deuce Seelster and he didn’t disappoint, coming up aces.

Driven by Paul MacDonell for trainer Darren McCall, the son of Western Maverick took over after the first quarter, then pulled away impressively down the lane, rolling to a six length score in 1:52.2, identical to Moon Beam’s clocking. Alard Hanover came on for second, with Its That Time third and Roberts Rage fourth.

Deuce Seelster has been mopping up in the Ontario Sires Stakes program so far, winning two Gold finals at Mohawk and Flamboro, and remained perfect in his juvenile campaign, now six-for-six, with almost C$200,000 in the coffers, pretty impressive for a yearling purchase of only $16,000.

“I haven’t yet (seen a bottom to him),” said MacDonell. “He did get fractions the way he wanted them, but the thing about it was when I asked him to pace, he paced. He sure felt like it (had more left in the tank). You’re always thinking in the back of your mind that you want to keep something for next week. The win margin was enough.”

MacDonell was also aboard Somebeachsomewhere, an equally impressive and also undefeated winner of the third and fastest elim, coasting home by 3-1/2 lengths over the prohibitive 1-9 choice Dali in 1:52.1. Shadow Play was third, with Legacy N Diamonds fourth.

Taking command after the first quarter, Somebeachsomewhere was in complete control from there, easily repulsing a challenge from the Woodrow Wilson winner turning for home, in recording his third win of the season. The son of Mach Three had come into his elim fresh from a convincing score in the Battle of Waterloo on August 6 at Grand River Raceway in Elora, Ontario.

“He stepped up and showed that he could go with these kind of colts,” said MacDonell, who is now faced with a difficult decision to drive either Deuce Seelster or Somebeachsomewhere next Saturday. “I knew going to the gate he was full of himself and he showed it. Dali is an impressive animal and you can’t be too confident at any time. But my horse was full of pace at the head of the lane and I knew Dali would have to come a pretty good piece to get by him.”

Trained by Jean Louis Arsenault for the Schooner Stables of Truro, Nova Scotia, Somebeachsomewhere has now pocketed C$182,000 so far this year.